Glanvilles Supports Nepal Adventure

PORTSMOUTH, U.K. - Aug. 6, 2013 - PRLog -- Jenna and Natalie are both physiotherapy students from Southampton and thanks to fundraising and sponsorship supported by Glanvilles, they visited Nepal to support the efforts of physiotherapists in rural areas of the country, where healthcare is not easy to access and many people suffer from leprosy, tuberculosis and occupational conditions as a result of the hard labour required to make a living.

Here's what they said about their adventure:

"We were drawn to Nepal by the infamously friendly and welcoming nature of the people, the wildlife and of course the biggest mountain range in the world!

Our trip to Nepal could not have been further from our expectations. We have had the most fantastic time learning a completely new way of life, being welcomed into a wonderful Nepali family and working in a rural hospital over the last five weeks.

We volunteered at Scheer Memorial Hospital, within the outpatients Physiotherapy team as part of the wider hospital which included medical and surgical wards, paediatrics and Intensive Care. The physiotherapists have a very different way of working compared to the UK, and the patients have very different complaints – it wasn't uncommon for people to have injuries from being stepped on by a Yak, or falling out of a mango tree!

We were also very lucky to support other areas of Physiotherapy during our trip. We visited the Muscular Dystrophy centre in Bhaktapur, a small rehabilitation centre for young children with degenerative muscle weakness. We had great fun playing games and watching their art class – they have the most fantastic talent for oil painting and the artwork is their only source of funding – we couldn't resist taking one home. Secondly we really enjoyed the Projects Abroad 'dirty days' at the Nutritional Rehabilitation Hospital for malnourished children near Patan. Here we filed down and painted beds and played with the children all day in the sunshine – it was hard work but great fun and a great way to give back to the community that welcomed us so well.

On the weekends we had time to explore the country! We travelled for nine hours to reach Pokhara in the mountains and took in the many sights in the Kathmandu Valley. By far our best trip was the eight-hour hike to Namobuddha, east of Kathmandu. The trek was entirely uphill, muddy and hot but it was worth every step thanks to the beautiful Buddhist monasteries and breath-taking views. The peak is lined with millions of Tibetan prayer flags, used by Buddhist monks to spread their prayers of love and peace to the world through the wind.

Nepal has exceeded our expectations on so many levels. Despite having very little, the people give so much and are the friendliest we've ever met. We've learnt that the material things we rely on so much at home are of little importance here (who needs electricity at night?!) and the relaxed pace of life allows people to spend more time together and enjoy each day.

We'd like to send a huge thank the team at Glanvilles for their generous support towards our voluntary project – we certainly couldn't have done it without them!"

Glanvilles have offices in Fareham, Havant and Isle of Wight and offer a full range of legal services for individuals and businesses. For more information visit www.glanvilles.co.uk